362.Gluten intolerance Moderated discussion and help for gluten free, coeliac, celiac, wheat allergies or intolerance, Cookery and recipes part 7

Re Gluten intolerance and Pain: from Diana Fernandez on 2006-09-28

Hi,
I have had several pain in my stomach during seven months, in the first month after conducting an endoscopy drs. have found the helicobacteria and it was eliminated with some antibiotics. After this happened new problems in my stomach and colon appeared, at that time I was having only fresh food and less processed food, drs. told me it could be colitis so I had to change my diet for bread, rice, and pasta -among others-, one week later after having changed my diet pains in my joints, bones in hands, knees, and feet appeared to the point I could barely walk and type, since two months the situation hasn't changed that much, drs. took to the hospital and conducted all kinds of tests but they haven't found anything so far, at this point and with the several change of my diet I am wondering if this could be related to gluten intolerance, I appreciate any advice. Thanks

Re Gluten intolerance and Pain: from Peter on 2006-09-28

If your symptoms have got very much worse after increasing the amount of bread and pasta in your diet, then there is a possibility that the symptoms that you describe could be caused by the gluten in the diet. This is not always apparent from an endoscopy.

It would do no harm to try a completely gluten-free diet for a couple of months.
Since you are at present discussing your medical problems with your doctor it would be wise to discuss this with your doctor.

The intense course of antibiotics needed to eliminate helicobacter can also trigger latent intolerances to become apparent.

Re: Gluten intolerance and Pain: from Emily Baxter on 2007-03-09

Hi, I work for the prescribing team in east kent, one of my GPs has asked if there are any hypertensive medications that do not have wheat or gluten used in the excipients available.

Re: Gluten Intolerance and Ulcerative Colitis: from Leila on 2007-03-12

Hi! I posted here some time ago, and was suffering quite badly with my uc, and started a gluten free diet as a last resort. I have now been virtually symptom free for five months, and been able to reduce some of my medication. I would definitely advocate being gluten free if you have uc, or at least give it a go and see if it makes any difference. I was ready to have surgery, but am going to see if I can avoid it by adhering to quite a strict diet. It is a big adjustment to make to begin with, but I remember being in and out of hospital with horrible pain, and feeling like I was about to die, and it is a small sacrifice to make. Good luck to all who try it!

Re: Gluten Intolerance and Ulcerative Colitis: from Peter on 2007-03-12

Re: Gluten Intolerance and Ulcerative Colitis: from Melinda on 2007-04-08

hi, I am in limbo awaiting tests and GI consult end of may. have had allergies to beef pork dairy yeast in the past. upon removing them I got better. been having trouble for a little over a year finally tried GF diet and had 11 good days ending with a splurge on mac and cheese..got back on track and it worked again fpr 8..not sure where it went wrong. so went to the allergist since that is where my comfort came from before. i did test slightly pos. for wheat and oats. he submitted the celiac blood work and will see what GI guy says in 2 months..... plan to stick with the GF diet. my family seems to be bothered by my "food tangents" but i think they are more bothered by mom living in the crapper. wish me luck. I am on day 3 after a a BIG flub at my son's birthday. cake and ice cream.. I really am smarter than that.

I am returning to France after two years in Dakar, Senegal...I have been following a strict gluten-free diet for the past 12 months after my husband and I "self-diagnosed" gluten intolerance as the root of my bloated-yet-thin woes...My problem is that upon visiting my home in Oregon last year, an allergist and a gastroenterologist both came up with negative results from testing...although they said since I had been very strict in my adherence to the gluten-free regime (not even consuming bouillon cubes, soy sauce, glucose syrops etc) for the four months prior to the tests ...they could have likely been inaccurate...

My question is this: How long must one ingest gluten to be accurately tested and how much gluten must one consume on a daily basis in order to obtain an accurate reading? I must admit to finding precious little information on this subject here in Dakar, and I'm not sure I want to reintroduce gluten if it is not necessary as I have felt much better since eliminating gluten from my diet.

Re: Does anyone know of UK Gluten intolerance testing: from Peter on 2007-04-22

There are some medical papers published on the time needed for eating gluten before the tests are again positive.The results showed that the time was very variable, with some people who had been confirmed previously by biopsy, still showing negative results at the end of the experiment.

Where testing is done in the UK the period suggested is often 6 weeks, but the amount of gluten ingested can also be very variable. Negative results will not be as reliable after 6 weeks as for someone who has never been on a gluten-free diet.

The question to ask yourself is, would you go back to eating gluten if the tests come out negative? If the answer is no, then there is little point in putting yourself through the stress of reintroducing gluten in your diet.

Re: Does anyone know of UK Gluten intolerance testing: from Sam on 2007-04-24

I have just come across this message board so I hope none of you mind me posting a view regarding testing. For many many years I was told by my GP that I was suffering for IBS. However I did put myself on a Gluten Free Diet and within weeks felt like a new woman, but by doing this it meant that no one was able to give me a test that would be reliable, I had the blood test and it did as expected come back negative, however I did have to put Gluten back into my body for a period of 6 weeks and I have to say it was the worst 6 weeks of my life, but I had biopsy as my doctor said even if the blood test did come back postive I would have to have the biopsy anyway, I did this test privately as my GP said it was all in my head. The test came back that I did have Celiac Disease, but I have to say the help I now get its was worth the 6 weeks pain. I have had a bone scan and being treated Very well by the NHS, the only part I am annoyed with is I had to go private my GP has since said sorry, but I hope I have raised his awareness. So I think it is worth 6 weeks of pain and the help you then get is massive.

Re: Gluten Intolerance and Ulcerative Colitis: from Giri on 2007-04-24

Was diagnosed with UC in 2004 when I was 39- have had my share of remissions and relapses, steroids etc. Am on Asacol 2 pills twice a day. UC is really uncommon here in India- in fact I have not met in person a single other UC patient! About a year back I started realising that wheat increases my trouble. I reported this to my gastro - he simply said that it is a good observation and that I must stay off wheat. During remission periods I used to get back to wheat -then have another relapse and off wheat again! I was ignorant of the strong linkage between UC and gluten- which I later found on the net. Was not a big problem since we have plenty of gluten free choice in Indian cuisine. But I now find that beer- the only alcoholic beverage I have and also love to have-contains gluten! Feeling terrible about this- no gluten free beers in India. At this difficult time it was simply so good to stumble onto this site & to write this (in India, the UC patient is very lonely). I have only one question- if I go to a pathology lab, what test should I ask for to confirm if I am really gluten intolerant? Even CD is unknown in India.